Penumbra
by Aleine Skyfire
Summary: One call turns Buzz Lightyear's universe upside-down. A second call shatters it completely. And Mira Nova is right at the center of the shadows. Some chapters will be M-rated.
1. Prologue: Shatterpoint

**Author's Note:**

I still have _Breakaway_ to finish rewriting, _Galactic Treasure_ to update someday, and my first SW fic to continue. So I'm definitely crazy for doing this, especially when my 'Net is down at home and I have no idea when it'll come back up again. But the idea latched on and would not let go.

What's a penumbra? It's the darkest point of a shadow.

Aria Saralyn, a wonderful SW fanfic author, once wrote a fic called _Darker than Darkness_. This fic is inspired by it, although I'd say _this_ one is more intense.

The rating for now is T, though depending on how bad it gets, I may actually have to jump it up to M. *cue gasp from readers* I know, I know, I've never done anything worthy of the M before. But this fic… just might warrant it.

This is much, much darker than the vast majority of BLoSC fanfiction out there. And despite that, I'll do my best to stay true to the characters.

**==Penumbra==**

**Prologue**

**Shatterpoint**

He has a carefully-constructed routine for a carefully-constructed universe.

In the morning, he wakes up, has his coffee, drives up to work, meets up with his team, blasts off to protect the galaxy (usually from a certain Evil Emperor), has at least one meal with his team at their favorite restaurant, comes home in the evening and racks out on the couch to sleep the sleep of the justified.

That's his routine.

His universe is very black and white, with Good on one side (his job) and Evil on the other (his arch-nemesis). He has his copilot, a sometimes-spitfire princess who's not afraid to give him a piece of her mind (or _take_ a piece of _his_); his gunner, a kindhearted but rather gullible farmboy who idolizes him; and his scanner, a smart-mouthed robot who has more vices than any hero should ever have. A plethora of identical, miniature astrophysicists; a short-tempered but goodhearted commanding officer; and a load of fellow Rangers complete the part of the Good Side that forms his job. On the _other_ side, he has his archenemy, an Evil Emperor who never stops trying to take over the galaxy; his former-partner-turned-bad-guy, an erstwhile best friend who can be really wicked or sort-of good, depending on the situation; and his target-practice, a never-ending supply of easily-destroyed combat 'bots.

That's his universe, and, despite the millions of times he's come close to meeting his Maker, it's a pretty good universe.

But for some reason, the routine is a little off today.

He's sitting in the Control Room, sipping coffee and listening to the morning bustle around him. Nearby, XR's already back in sleep mode and snoring, and one LGM has found a very attentive audience in Booster.

That leaves Mira unaccounted for—hence, the routine being off.

Sighing, he decides to try to comm her again.

_Chirp-chirp! Chirp-chirp!_

Oh, that must be her now!

"Hey, you're—" He stops short, blinks, makes sure that he's not just seeing things. "Zurg?"

"Nice to see you, too, Lightyear!" Zurg retorts on the comm screen, scowling.

Okay, this is weird—Zurg _never_ calls Buzz on his communicator. "Zurg, what do you—"

"Actually, what I _want_ is what's best for everyone in this case," Zurg interrupts. "Even Evil Emperors have standards, you know."

Buzz's eyebrows draw together. Best for everyone. Standards. Yeah, _right_. "What are you talking about?"

Zurg's face abruptly turns serious. "Do you remember Parik Trelme?"

Buzz feels his own face harden. He needs only one hand to count the number of criminals for whom he's pushed to take the death penalty, and Trelme is one of them. "I remember."

"He's out of PC-7."

"_What?_ How do you know?"

"He did some work for me two weeks ago, but I didn't know that it was him until last night."

"Okay, thanks for the heads-up," Buzz tells the Evil Emperor, all business now. They have to hurry to catch Trelme before he ravages _more_ lives. "We'll put out an APB for him—"

"Not so fast, Captain Galaxy!" Zurg interjects again. That's getting annoying. "There's one more thing you need to know. Trelme wouldn't accept cash—only a devious piece of technology."

"What—" Buzz catches the croak in his voice, pauses, starts over. "_What_ devious piece of technology?"

"An implant that can be inserted into a person's arm with very little risk—the catch is, the person would be Tangean Royal. The implant is designed to have a negating effect on their ghosting ability, similar to a Royal/Grounder power cancelation."

For a moment, Buzz could swear his heart stops beating. When he can speak again, his mouth is paper-dry. "Mira."

For once, Zurg's expression is regretful, and it's a look so completely alien to him that it's almost frightening. "'Fraid so. Sorry, Lightyear."

No, he doesn't have to say that, he doesn't have to be sorry, because Mira will be just fine. She _will_ be. "We'll take precautionary—"

"Captain Lightyear?" calls a Rhizomian cadet. "Have a call for you!"

"You can hold that thought," Zurg tells Buzz dryly.

"Yeeeah, hold on." Buzz hurries over to the Rhizomian boy's console—this had better be good. "Who is it, Cadet?" But he recognizes the face right away, a man from the Capital City Police Force. "Woody!"

"Hi, Buzz," the other man says. There's an indefinable something in his voice, in his face. "I've got bad news for you."

Buzz's stomach tightens with apprehension. "What bad news?"

"We found a note that was addressed to you," Woody informs him. "It was found in a broken-in apartment—a neighbor phoned us just fifteen minutes ago."

He knows. He just _knows_. But he doesn't want to believe it, not yet, because that will shatter his universe—and Mira. "And?"

"_And_ the note says, _Got her, Lightyear_—it's signed by a man called Parik Trelme."

Buzz's stomach knots so tightly that it hurts and he almost stops breathing. He feels cold, pale, lightheaded, and this can't be happening not Mira no please not her no this can't be happening…

"Buzz, the apartment was Mira's. She's gone."

With those words, his carefully-constructed universe shatters.


	2. Chapter 1: Faultlines

**Author's Note:**

Okay, sorry for taking so long! Star Wars took over my life. xD Thank you for all the lovely reviews, by the way! That's the most I've _ever_ gotten on a first installment of a fic, and it's BLoSC! You'd think I'd get that kind of response in Star Wars! =D

In this chapter, you find out why I've decided to switch the rating to M. I'm not taking any chances, folks, sorry. It's going up.

**To my reviewers, in-general:**

I enjoyed inserting Woody, and you'll definitely see more of him here and there in the future. The description of Buzz's universe… ohhh, I worded that _very_ carefully to make sure that I was getting it all exactly right. It was great writing that.

**To my reviewers, specifically:**

Historian1912: *laughs* It's okay—I _know_ I'm crazy. Hey, what can I say? My muse is _extremely_ insistent. If I don't obey her every whim, she drives me up the wall. =D And, aww, hope you can still post _something_ someday. You've got some great ideas!

Well, since you asked for a Mira Introspection, I actually have one in the works, now! In my head, not on my laptop yet, but hey, at least it _exists_ now, you know? Thank you for the praise for the other two! (The Warp story has to be retconned, now, but that's beside the point. xD)

Thank you for everything, and I hope your electronics do okay!

jlasnoopy2: Thank you, and thanks for the fave! Zurg calling Buzz was fun—weird and fun. Don't you worry—you'll be getting more of Zurg for sure! Buzz and Mira… mmm, probably _are_ a little closer by now, since I figure this story to be taking place three or four years since the formation of Team Lightyear. It seems like it would be a natural progression from their chemistry in the show. However, I would hazard that Buzz would _still_ be reacting this way, even in-series itself—it just strikes me as being that IC. *shrugs* And Parik Trelme… well, that creep's the reason this fic is going into the M zone. You'll definitely find out about him in this chapter

**==Chapter I==**

**Fault Lines**

"She's already _gone?_" Zurg explodes. "Oh, that just burns _my_ toast! The one time I decide to help out the good guys, no strings attached, somebody else beats me to it and—"

Buzz feels like somebody just took a plasma cannon to him and punched a hole through his abdomen. He can't breathe, and he can't seem to order his respiratory system to do its job. It doesn't help that the world's spinning around him at a terrifying rate, either. He slumps against the console, distantly hearing Woody's and the Rhizomian's concern and unable to respond to it. He hears Zurg ranting from his communicator and forces himself to focus on it…

And then, suddenly, the world isn't spinning anymore, he can breathe again, and he can snap, "_Shut up!_"

Zurg stops, blinks at Buzz, and some part of his mind registers that this is the first time he's ever said that to Zurg… and the rest of his mind doesn't really care. The only thing that matters right now is Mira.

"Unless you have any more pertinent information," Buzz tells Zurg coolly, "I suggest you _be quiet_." That tone – that frosty, measured, slightly disdainful tone—Zurg actually _has_ heard before from Buzz Lightyear. Because, while _Captain_ Lightyear has never used it with Zurg before, he knows—just _knows_—from the look on Zurg's face that _Supreme Commander_ Lightyear _has_.

…And the thought of acting like his evil alternate self isn't as appalling as it normally would be.

Buzz turns away from his glove to scan the huge circular room for any sign of his commanding officer. "Commander?" he calls. In his peripheral vision, he sees XR reactivating and Booster looking up from the console he's been studying. Booster and XR. This will break their hearts.

A clinical, detached part of him whispers that they'll still be living. After all, his own heart has just broken…

…Commander Nebula isn't responding. Buzz quickly pulls up a split-screen on his communicator and comms his CO. "Commander, Lightyear here. We've got an emergency."

* * *

_0815 hours CCT, .75 hours since Mira's kidnapping_

"****," the Commander mutters, staring at the floor. "It… oh, just ****."

Buzz is standing rigidly at attention, silent now after his debriefing. But his mind echoes his CO's sentiment.

Commander Nebula turns to a vidscreen on the wall, displaying a thoroughly unhappy Captain Woody Hanks. "Captain Hanks, have your people told King Nova yet?"

Woody grimaces. "Yes, sir—right as I was talking with Captain Lightyear. The King is… very angry, sir."

Of _course_, he is. Under normal circumstances, Mira being kidnapped would be enough to make the King of Tangea furious. Add to that _who_ has kidnapped her, and there's no telling just what limits King Nova's fury will reach—or if there will even _be_ any limits at all.

The Commander frowns, says simply, "I'm sure." A heartbeat, and then he starts barking out a long series of orders via comm and vidscreen, both to the city police and to his own Rangers.

Buzz just stands there, listening, forcing himself not to run off to _42_ and tear the heavens apart until he finds Mira…

A small, tinny cough comes from the open doorway, and Buzz turns to find Booster and XR there.

"Buzz?" Booster ventures tentatively.

The Commander is still giving orders, right now to Woody, but he gives Buzz a nod of permission. Buzz nods back and steps over to his teammates, his heart dropping to his stomach. They don't know yet, and he's about to tell them something that's bound to change their lives forever.

"Mira's been kidnapped," he says quietly and without preamble.

Shock freezes the younger Rangers for all of two seconds, and their never-say-die attitude instantly flares to life. "Well, what are we waiting for?" XR demands, scowling.

"Yeah!" Booster chimes.

"Let's find her," XR continues, not missing a beat, "and give whatever creep decided to—"

"Wait." The pair freezes again, this time at the solemn authority in Buzz's voice—they need only one hand to count how many times they've heard that tone. "Mira…" He finds he can't look at them, so his gaze shifts to his boots. "It's not Zurg or any of the usual, if that's what you're thinking."

Booster frowns. "Well, then… who is it?"

"Do you…" Buzz hesitates. Booster pretty much knows Buzz's entire life-story, but would the Jo-Adian actually know about the perpetrator of such a… _mature_… crime?

Time to find out. "Have you ever heard of Parik Trelme?"

Booster's frown deepens thoughtfully. "Parik Trelme… uhhh… one of the guys you arrested… you pushed for the death pena…" Looking up, Buzz can see full memory and realization hit Booster at once, and the younger man's eyes widens. "Buzz, you don't mean –"

"Don't mean _what_?" XR demands, tapping a tread impatiently. "Who's Parik Trelme? What's going on here?"

Buzz darts a quick glance up at Booster, grimaces, turns his attention to XR. "Trelme isn't a smuggler or a thief or anything like that," he explains. "His brand of evil is in a league different from what we typically have to deal with." There is just no way of breaking this softly, is there? "Trelme is… Trelme is a rapist, XR.

XR stares at Buzz for a few long moments, then barks a nervous laugh. "Hah, you really had me going there for a second, Buzz. Heh-heh-heh… I mean, the very idea that Mira would be kidnapped by a… by a…"

"A _rapist_, XR," Buzz emphasizes, frowning. He should have known. "XR, I know—it's hard—"

"HARD?" XR screeches. "HARD, _NOTHING_! BUZZ, SHE, WHAT THE… WHAT'S GOING ON, *******?"

Buzz squeezes his eyes shut, grimacing again. He's going to have a headache for the next forty-eight hours, thanks to that shriek—he just knows it. "XR, I put Trelme away. He's trying to get back at me through Mira." The bottom of his stomach drops out again, and he's not sure whether to faint or be sick or launch into a helpless tirade.

But he won't. He won't do any of those things, because he'll get Mira back and they'll all be fine.

* * *

_1342 hours CCT, 6.25 hours since Mira's kidnapping_

The crime scene—Buzz's stomach churns at the thought of Mira's apartment being called that—is still under inspection when an unwelcome but not unexpected figure arrives.

"Captain Lightyear!"

Buzz turns at the authoritative voice and forces himself to salute. "King Nova, sir."

The King is dressed in astonishingly practical clothes—a navy-blue jacket over a black jumpsuit. The two black-clad Tangeans flanking him are obviously Secret Service men, or whatever passes for it on Tangea. Buzz makes a mental note to check into that as soon as he can.

As unsurprising as the King's appearance is the raw but controlled fury blazing in his blue eyes. "Captain Lightyear, have you discovered anything of my daughter's whereabouts?"

"We're tracking down a lead on a stolen car sighted when the kidnapping took place, sir," Buzz tells him. "That should turn up some clues."

The tiniest flicker of relief flits over the King's face. "Good. My men and I offer you whatever help you may need for the duration of the investigation."

Buzz blinks, taken aback. "Sir, I—"

But King Nova is obviously not going to take _no_ for an answer. He stomps up to Buzz and sticks his nose in the Ranger's face. "Listen, Lightyear," he snarls, "that is my _daughter_ out there. My daughter, who's been kidnapped by a serial _rapist_ who's ruined countless lives! And if you _think_ that you're going to make me go home, I—"

But Buzz is no longer nose-to-nose with the King, backpedaling and throwing up his hands. "Sir, I'm sure the Commander will appreciate your help."

The King looks only slightly mollified. "Good. Now. What should we do first?"

Buzz's only response was to open his blue eyes very, _very_ wide.

* * *

_1730 hours ZTT, 8 hours since Mira's kidnapping_

"ZURG!"

The roar nearly shakes the throne room and sends the Grubs and brainpods scattering. The irony is that, for once, it's not the Evil Emperor who's bellowing.

Red eyes narrowed, Zurg looks up from a clipboard just in time to see his right-hand man storm into the room. "Good evening, Darkmatter," he says coolly. "Whatever is—"

"Send them out," Darkmatter bites out, his face an absolute thundercloud. "_Now_."

Terrified, the minions turn to their master for orders. Zurg looks between them and the heaving Darkmatter for a few moments, then decides. "Go."

The little vermin need no further encouragement. Five seconds tops, and they're all gone. If only they could _come_ to work as quickly as they _leave_ it.

As the door shuts, Zurg returns his attention to his number-one agent. "Now. What was so crater-blasted galaxy-shattering that you had to come roaring in here?"

The cold, biting tone would normally make Darkmatter falter. Today, it doesn't faze him a bit, and that is _not_ a good sign. Whatever's gotten Darkmatter riled up, it's big.

"Why didn't you tell me that Parik Trelme was loose?" Darkmatter growls.

Oh. "I beg your—"

"And _why_ didn't you tell me he kidnapped the Princess? Why did I have to find out about it _on the news_?"

Zurg is taken aback at that. "The media got a hold of it already? Eesh, that's really gonna can Nova's peaches."

"Zurg!" Darkmatter shouts incredulously.

All right, enough of this. "WHAT?" Zurg thunders.

"Why didn't you_ kriffing tell me?_"

"Why should you care?"

"_Because I helped Lightyear put Trelme away!_" Darkmatter blinks, as if surprised by his own vehemence. Zurg certainly is. Darkmatter tends to be a pretty mild, dispassionate man.

Darkmatter shakes his head and says, much more calmly, "I helped Lightyear put Trelme away. I can help him again." The instinctive disapproval must be visible on Zurg's face, because Darkmatter continues, "No, wait." He takes a deep breath. "Look… we both know that Trelme's a really evil man. At least _we_ have standards—this guy, he doesn't. He's already ruined more than a hundred female lives, and to be honest, I really don't want to see him ruin the Princess's. She kinda grows on you, y'know? and she really doesn't deserve to… to be raped."

He falters now. "And… and you've said, sometimes, how you really would hate to see anything really bad happen to Lightyear. How do you think it's going to affect him if Mira's raped or—" he took a shaky breath—"even killed?"

Zurg feels his heart drop somewhere to the vicinity of his rocket boots. Blast Darkmatter for being so right. Blast the Princess for getting herself into this in the first place. Blast Lightyear for being so important to Zurg. And blast that ***-****** rapist for starting this whole mess!

He folds his arms and glowers at Darkmatter. "So you want to help Lightyear, mm?"

Darkmatter makes eye contact and doesn't break it. "Yes."

Wow, the man's growing some serious backbone—that is _not_ good. "Fine. Go." Eyes glowing brightly, Zurg approaches Darkmatter slowly, making the younger man backpedal instinctively. Good. "But let me tell you something, Darkmatter," he murmurs darkly. "You speak to me like that _ever_ again, and I will come up with something _very_ imaginative and _highly_ inventive to make you scream up and down the scale. Is that clear?"

The half-blood's eyes fairly shine with fear, but his voice remains hard. "Yes."

Too much backbone. Not a good thing, at all.

"_Get out_," Zurg hisses.

Darkmatter bows and leaves hastily, leaving an Evil Emperor to brood and wonder just how, exactly, his universe could have turned upside down so rapidly.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Those are some _serious_ repercussions. It was actually kind of refreshing, writing so much dark emotion without sacrificing the characters' personalities. (Although I do tend to write the characters as being more mature and realistic than they are in the show...)

Btw, in case anybody here is still reading the under-rewrites _For Good I: Breakaway_, the seventh chapter (site chapter 8) is now re-uploaded!

_**Please review!**_


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